Damia loved flying but not in planes older than she was. She breathed a sigh of relief when the plane slowly shuddered to a halt. “We’re here!” her father declared, his eyes gleaming. Her mother rolled her eyes, her full lips curving upwards in a smile of amusement.

“That’s perfectly obvious,” she said. There was a cacophony of noises as they unbuckled and the pilot unloaded their bags from what served as the luggage compartment. She could hear the last dying noises of an engine that had definitely seen better days and was once again grateful to be back on solid ground.

She let her parents exit first. It was a wise decision. The scenery made her pause. It was stunning! She was silent as she slowly moved to stand between her parents. “Wow,” her father breathed, taking a moment to gaze at the beauty of the Alaska Range.

Coming from her father, a park ranger, that was saying something. Her mother glanced at both of them, her eyes expressionless. She had never appreciated the beauty of the world around them like her husband and only daughter had.

“Welcome to Healy,” the pilot said. Her father smiled at him. It was a good thing he couldn’t see the curl of his wife’s lips. How on Earth could she pursue her scholarly interests in such a small place? Damia couldn’t help but be concerned.

Her parents had married young. They had been in love and enchanted by the adventure of living near national parks and all their beauty. However, the reality was much different. Once they moved out of the newlywed phase and the stress of living off of one rather low income, things changed. They changed a lot.

Damia was the glue that held them together, although she was only very dimly aware of that fact. “Thank you!” her father said. “It was a pleasant journey and you were very informative.”

The pilot beamed. Her father certainly did a certain charm. More pleasantries were exchanged before they each took their bags and moved away from the tiny plane in the tiny airport to where their ride waited for them.